Britain

Hello all and welcome to the new week. Wishing you all a happy and successful one whatever you are up to. I'm about to jump in the car and head off on my first ever road trip for Meet the Farmers. It'll be focused mostly around south east Scotland but my first stop today will … Continue reading Meet the Farmers Goes North

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Unless you have downloaded the Met Office app, set your alarm for 6.25pm to catch the evening weather forecast, own a weather station or simply keep one eye permanently fixed on the sky you cannot really call yourself a proper Brit. As a nation we are frankly obsessed with the weather. This is often called … Continue reading Making hay while the sun shines

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Like most British people I drink tea; a lot of tea. In fact, I have a full cup of tea on my desk right now as I type this post. Elsewhere on the desk sit three additional mugs, now empty but contained tea not so long ago. Taking tea is a basic part of our … Continue reading 5 ways to be a more eco-minded tea drinker

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Fifteen months ago an idea came into my head. Wouldn't it be brilliant if some of the young farmers and conservationists who are just starting out in their careers could come together at an event to learn from each other, talk with each other and build connections. After all, as individual organisations and networks Young … Continue reading The Next Generation of farmers and naturalists talking together

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To me, England is the country, and the country is England. And when I ask myself what I mean by England, when I think of England when I am abroad, England comes to me though my various senses – through the ear, through the eye and through certain imperishable scents. .The sounds of England, the … Continue reading The Myth of England

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Many of you will already have heard about this inspired project from the Arts and Humanities Research Council encouraging Brits to nominate their favourite book about the natural world. Each nomination must be of a book 'by a UK-based writer or by an author who writes about the UK's landscape and/or wildlife', and the deadline for … Continue reading Land Lines: finding the UK’s favourite book about nature

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It won’t be news to any regular reader of this blog to hear that many farmers struggle to make a living from the land. Farming is famously volatile and those running farming businesses are at the mercy of world markets, changing government policy and of course the weather! The decision to withdraw from the European … Continue reading Book Review: ‘Land of Plenty’ by Charlie Pye-Smith

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Beep, Beep, Beep, Beep. This was the sound that greeted us. Maldon's recycling centre was a hive of activity as we walked past; perhaps an unlikely gateway to one of Essex's hidden gems, but this is the juxtaposed reality of this oh so maligned of counties. Essex is a gloriously diverse county, and I am … Continue reading Northey Island

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There is an area of south Essex that I have always dreamed of visiting, a place so remote and with such transitory terrain that it seems impossible that the edges of London are just 30 miles away. Nonetheless, between the Rivers Crouch and Thames is situated a mysterious footpath, in my mind one of the … Continue reading Book Review: ‘The Old Ways’ by Robert Macfarlane